Corktown Church Gets Boost From Federal Head Start Program

(WWJ) A small congregation is having a big impact in Detroit's Corktown community.

WWJ's Vickie Thomas reports the Spirit of Hope Church is getting federal dollars to run a preschool program that will not only enrich families in the neighborhood, it will also help keep the doors open for all its other community service programs.

Matrix Human Services President and CEO Brad Coulter is excited to open a Head Start program in the historic church that's marked by turrets and gargoyles. It's at the corner of Trumbull and Martin Luther King Jr Boulevard.

"It's great that we're able to open this facility for 3-5 year olds just north of Corktown in the extremely historic Spirit of Hope Church," he said.

The program is recruiting children for the free preschool classes that are open to children from families with incomes below the poverty guidelines. Children in adoption or foster situations and families receiving public assistance are also eligible. More information can be found at www.matrixheadstart.org.

With religious and demographic trends at play, it's not unusual to see only a dozen people at one of the church's worship services, but John Woll from the church says they continue to serve the community in other ways.

"We have our farm here, we've got some live poultry that provide eggs in the community," he said.